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Ice, Fog, Hamper Morning Commute

CONCORD, N.H. (CBS/AP) — After the first full day of winter brought everything from balmy temperatures along the Mid-Atlantic to snow in the Midwest and ice, snow and flooding in the Great Lakes, some people could be left in the dark for Christmas.

Much of the foul weather that occurred Sunday has lessened or disappeared entirely, but the harsh aftereffects were expected to linger.

In Massachusetts, icy commutes and heavy fog were reported in the Methuen and Wilmington areas as well as other locations along the New Hampshire border.

By late Sunday, nearly 700 flights nationwide had been canceled and about 7,200 were delayed, according to aviation tracking website FlightAware.com. But flights were mostly running on schedule on Monday morning.

During one of the nation's busiest travel times, icy weather was expected to make roads slick and hazardous through at least Monday from the upper Midwest to northern New England.

Record high temperatures were reached in some Mid-Atlantic states this weekend, but temperatures were expected to drop back to the mid-30s by Monday night.

On Sunday, the mercury reached 70 degrees in New York's Central Park, easily eclipsing the previous high of 63 from 1998. Records were also set in Wilmington, Del., (67), Atlantic City, N.J., (68), and Philadelphia (67). Washington tied its 1889 mark at 72.

The scene was much more seasonal Sunday in Vermont, where Lynne White of West Charleston listened to the cracking of falling tree branches and gazed at the coating of ice on her home.

"It's actually really pretty," she said. "Not safe, I'm sure, but it's pretty."

Despite a glaze of freezing rain in Maine, plenty of shoppers ventured to the outlet malls in Kittery on the last weekend before Christmas.

(TM and © Copyright 2013 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2013 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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